Flight School at Riverside Municipal Airport (KRAL)
6951 Flight Road, Suite 106, Riverside, CA 92504 951-590-3572
Our primary training facility. Both FAA Part 61 and FAA Part 141 training. Full single-engine and multi-engine fleet. Complex aircraft for commercial requirements. Direct access to some of the most diverse training airspace in the country.
If you’re on a career track, this is where you’ll base your training.
Book a Discovery Flight from Riverside | See Training Programs
About the airport
Class D towered, 819 feet MSL, single 5,401-foot runway (09/27). Tower 0700 to 2100 local. After-hours operations transition to CTAF, giving students experience in both controlled and uncontrolled environments at the same field.
Field facts that matter:
- Class D tower · radio communication with a real controller from day one
- 5,401-foot runway · comfortable margin for all training aircraft including the Beechcraft Duchess
- GPS/RNAV and ILS approaches · Runway 09 has a full ILS, ideal for instrument training
- Class B transition to Ontario (KONT) 10 NM north, LAX 50 NM west
- March ARB (KRIV) Class C · 5 NM southeast, military airspace exposure
Airspace within 30 NM
What career-track students see in any professional cockpit:
- Class B: Ontario (KONT), Los Angeles (KLAX)
- Class C: March ARB (KRIV)
- Class D: Riverside (KRAL), Chino (KCNO), Corona (KAJO), Long Beach (KLGB), Fullerton (KFUL)
- Class G practice areas south and east
- Special use: R-2515 at Edwards AFB, W-289 over the Pacific
Cross-country students routinely fly to San Diego (KSAN), Catalina (KAVX), Palm Springs (KPSP), and Big Bear (KL35).
Training at Riverside
Part 141 structured training
Riverside is our Part 141 facility. FAA-approved structured syllabus with formal stage checks. Lower hour minimums (35 hours PPL, 190 hours commercial vs Part 61’s 40 and 250). Eligible for VA benefits / GI Bill subject to current VA approval.
Right choice if you’re:
- Using GI Bill benefits
- On an accelerated career timeline
- Funded by an employer or sponsor requiring structured programs
Part 61 flexible training
Most Riverside students train Part 61. Same FAA Airman Certification Standards. Your pace.
Every program available at Riverside
Including the ones not offered at Redlands:
- Private Pilot (Part 61 or 141)
- Instrument Rating (Part 61 or 141)
- Commercial Pilot (Part 61 or 141)
- Multi-Engine Rating · Beechcraft Duchess
- CFI / CFII / MEI · including MEI
- Airline Transport Pilot · checkride prep
- Career Track (Zero to Hero)
- High Performance & Complex · Piper Arrow
- High Altitude Endorsement · available (Redlands primary)
Fleet at Riverside
The complete fleet: Cessna 152, Cessna 172, Piper Warrior, Piper Cherokee Arrow (PA-28R), Beechcraft Duchess (BE-76) for multi-engine, plus a Redbird simulator for instrument and multi-engine emergency procedures.
Who trains here
- Career-track students · PPL through CFI. Multi-engine is here. Most students aiming at the airlines do the bulk of their training out of KRAL.
- Working adults · 45 minutes from most of Orange County, the Inland Empire, and southwestern LA County. Reasonable for evening and weekend training.
- Out-of-area students · accelerated PPL students relocate to Riverside for 30 to 90 days. We can help with referrals to local short-term housing.
Getting here
- Orange County: 35 to 50 minutes via the 91 or 55
- Los Angeles: 50 to 75 minutes via the 60 or 91
- San Bernardino / Redlands: 25 to 35 minutes via the 215 / 10
- Palm Springs: 60 to 75 minutes via the 10
- San Diego: 75 to 90 minutes via the 15
Commercial industrial zone bordering the Santa Ana River. Plenty of parking, easy ramp access, no security theatre between you and the airplane.
A typical training day
A pre-solo PPL student arriving for a mid-morning lesson:
Arrive 15 min before scheduled. Brief with your instructor for 15 to 20 min on objectives, weather, NOTAMs. Walk to the ramp, preflight (~15 min), call clearance delivery if needed, taxi to run-up. Depart either to the southeast practice area (Lake Mathews, Cleveland National Forest foothills) for maneuvers, or to Corona (KAJO) or Chino (KCNO) for pattern work.
Most lessons run 1.5 to 2.0 hours block, giving 1.0 to 1.5 hours flight. Total time at the airport including brief, fly, and debrief: about 2.5 hours.
Instrument students often depart on a filed IFR clearance for approach work at nearby fields. Commercial students run longer cross-countries to Bakersfield (KBFL), Palm Springs (KPSP), or San Luis Obispo (KSBP).
Facilities
Fuel (100LL and Jet A) on field. Maintenance on-airport. Ramp access direct from our office. Pilot lounge, briefing rooms, Redbird simulator.
Open 24/7 to GA. Outside tower hours (2100 to 0700), KRAL operates non-towered, giving students unusual flexibility for night training or early-morning departures.
Discovery flights from KRAL
30 to 60 minutes in the left seat with a CFI. Routes our students enjoy most:
- Catalina Island (KAVX) · over-water, mountain landing, the iconic SoCal flight
- Disneyland airspace boundary · the Class D shelf at John Wayne, park from 2,500 feet
- Hollywood Sign / Griffith Park · VFR transition through LA Class B
- Dana Point / Pacific coastline · south to the coast, return via Cleveland NF
Book a Discovery Flight from Riverside
Next steps
- Schedule a discovery flight
- Call us at 951-590-3572
- Stop by · 6951 Flight Road, Suite 106, Riverside, CA 92504
We’re at the airport six days a week. Walk the ramp before you commit.
